


Transversal Homework Club

by Stonecrusher



Series: AutoAca Universe [2]
Category: Transformers - All Media Types
Genre: Autobot Academy, Fan AU Crossover, Multiple Universes Colliding, Transformers New Primes of Cybertron, Transformers Reversal, Transformers Toku
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-17
Updated: 2021-01-23
Packaged: 2021-03-15 01:33:35
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 7,244
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28805109
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Stonecrusher/pseuds/Stonecrusher
Summary: Maccadam's Old Oil House. Dining Establishment. Neutral Zone. Dimensional singularity? It is the crossroads of a thousand dimensions... and a place where multiple dimensions collide. And now, the young heroes of some obscure dimensions have come together to beat the ultimate scourge......the scourge known as Homework!
Series: AutoAca Universe [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2111916
Comments: 1
Kudos: 6
Collections: TF:SNAP





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

  * Inspired by [Autobot Academy](https://archiveofourown.org/works/21794113) by [Stonecrusher](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Stonecrusher/pseuds/Stonecrusher). 



Calling it a new group of friends might've been pushing it. After all, it was difficult for friends to keep their dynamic going when they go across continents or even entire planets. Entirely different dimensions was another thing entirely. But Hot Shot was still cool with these... aquaintances he had stumbled across not a month into his time on Acadeimos.

The circumstances behind such an encounter are complicated but also very much in line with everything that had happened thus far. A fellow cadet from a nearby class named Arcee, who he had at least a good acquaintanceship with, first found the MaccaDoor on Acadeimos a week into the school year. There was one for every city in the commonwealth, so one even on a planet known for being well-hidden wasn't very surprising. From what Hot Shot knew, the door acted as a kind of portal, similar to the ancient space bridges used by starships before the invention of teleport pads and Transwarp drivers. But unlike spacebridges, the MaccaDoors all lead to a different world - a world unrestrained by time or space, the bar of the multiverse, simply called Maccadam's.

Between the constant ruckus and adventures of Autobot Academy, Hot Shot found that sometimes he needed a little extra time on assignments, so he came up with a plan to slip into Maccadam's and handle the homework that was pressing on.

Explaining his plan to the bartender himself earned him a good-hearted chuckle.

"There's no need to be always so secretive, kid!" The broad-shouldered orange mech smirked, "Why, I've had many young students pop into here and handle their assignments. The timeline inconsistencies always assure that they've got time to turn it in, too."

"Good to know!" Hot Shot noted.

"I mean, with all the clone nonsense, I'm sure you need the time to recover."

"...What clone nonsense?"

"Oh, this fic happens before that. Eh, sorry, mild spoiler," He cleared his throat, and moved on to another patron.

A brief time of minor consideration gave way to "eh, worry about it after this assignment's done," followed by him getting to a nearby booth and setting his assignment papers before him.

Hot Shot got decent grades even in early school. He was a smart kid by any standard, but his thirst for adventure and excitement overrode grades at any rate.  
In the real world, this sometimes meant he could be torn from an assignment when some dude flew by his window.  
In Maccadam's, there was no fighting, no strife, and everyone was welcome with the right money. Which meant that there wasn't that much to distract Hot Shot... which would sound fine on paper, but in practice...

"Ugggggggggggh, this is so boring."

...not so much.

Hot Shot's optics were alternating between glazing over and focusing on the assignment in question. Although his drive was focused, something in his mind screamed for something to happen.

"Excuse me," a new voice spoke up, giving Hot Shot's desire to be distracted an outlet, "Is, uh, is this booth taken?"

Hot Shot turned to the voice's owner and his optics widened slightly. A vibrant red and black jetformer of a design he hadn't seen before (yet looked oddly familiar) stood before the booth, her wings angling downwards. "Uh, hello, is it alright if me and my friend sit here?"

"Oh, no, it's a big booth, I don't mind," Hot Shot replied.

"Good!" the femme chirped, turning around and shouting a bit, "Orion, I found one that's pretty isolated!"

The friend in question approached, a blue and grey kid of clearly truckformer design with red highlights scattered around his frame (including one in the middle of his chest that looked like the 'ties' those organics often used to denote workers) approached.

"So, you two here for anything in particular?" Hot Shot addressed them.

"Schoolwork, actually," The friend - Orion, if what Hot Shot heard was correct - replied, "Some stuff happened at our school and we kinda need to finish up a major reading assignment, and our school caterer directed us to this place, said there's a time dilation thing going on or something?"

"Well, he might be correct," Hot Shot replied before taking a sip of the energon he purchased to justify his booth, "this bar kind has a weird effect on personal timelines."

"Well, Windblade, let's hope that it works," Orion addressed the girl and wait a minute did he just call her-

The spray of fluid escaped his mouth before he could stop it.

"Uh... you okay?" Orion replied.

"I'm fine, just..." Hot Shot pointed to the jetformer, "What did you say her name was?"

"Windblade?" Orion answered in confusion.

"You have the exact same name as my homeroom teacher," Hot Shot noted.

"Huh. Weird," Windblade replied, "Guess names repeat sometimes."

Hot Shot, however, was considering another conclusion. The bar was said to be multidimensional, right? It would follow that there's a likelyhood that he'd encounter an alternate version of someone he knew, and, well, this was that person.

"Sorry about that, just got taken by surprise," Hot Shot cleared his throat, "So, uh, what school you guys from?"

"Oh, the Jhiaxian Academy of Advanced Technology?" Windblade answered, clearly still connecting the dots that there was a chance that there were significant differences between their world and his.  
Such as the presence of such a school, for example.

"Ah," Hot Shot replied, "Oh, you'll have to forgive me. Slight universe discrepancies, here and there."

"Oh... I see," Orion noted.

"Not judging here," Hot Shot threw up his hands, "Different dimensions don't necessarily have different values..."

Orion and Windblade's optics went wide at this, but not out of alarm. More out of "wait, what the frag?"

"Something wrong?"

"You have... five fingers on each hand?" Orion asked.

"...Yeah?"

"Do, uh... do you happen to have a relic?" Windblade's question was more a whisper then anything else.

"...I mean, my grandma has a totem from a long extinct race in the attic, a gift from an old friend or something, but I don't have it here...?"

"Do Cybertronians in your universe just... have five fingers?" Orion asked.

"Uhhhhhh," Hot Shot thought about it, "I mean, it's common. but I know a guy with three fingers per hand?"

"...Interesting..." Windblade asked.

Hot Shot's eyes went down to her hands, and saw that they had four on each hand.

"Your three-fingered friend's still a nymph, right?" Orion asked.

"...Primus, I hope not. I mean, he's bigger then a freaking house right now," Hot Shot replied, "The thought of him being city sized is gonna be a bit of a shock."

The two of them looked at each other with a mild look of concern.

"Oh, enough about me, sit down and do what you will," Hot Shot motioned to the booth.

They decided to indulge him, finally sitting down.

The three of them were pretty chill with each other, but the issue remained that there were two dimensions involved in this chance meeting, and the number of differences between worlds was obviously great.

"Quick question before you get started," Hot Shot began.

"Yeah?" Orion responded.

"Is there a..." Hot Shot briefly considered his options for past Autobot leaders, "...Temenos Prime in your universe?"

"Can't say I recognize the name."

Whatever similarities between their universe and his had, the split happened extremely long ago, possibly as a result of the Schism. Or maybe even further?  
In any case, Hot Shot knew that the differences were great enough that they wouldn't really be that much help with the homework. Best not to bother them about it, he thought as he returned to his studies.

His boring, boring studies that were boring and had little relevance for hero work and ARGH.

Okay, so, Hot Shot's brain couldn't tear away from the curiosity of the two sitting at the booth, so he directed an audial in their direction.

"So the first civil war was between who again?" Windblade asked.

"I think it was the Council of Ancients and Threefold Spark, right?" Orion answered.

"Sounds about right. Who was leading the Threefold Spark?"

"I'm, like, twenty percent sure that the guy was named Archon?"

"*CAFF*EX*CAFF!*" Hot Shot cleared his throat.

"Huh?" The two turned to him.

"Uh... my universe had a Threefold Spark, too," Hot Shot replied.

"Really? What kind of organization was it like?" Orion asked.

"Well, the "Threefold Spark" of my world was less an organization and more an individual. Exarchon," Hot Shot replied, "...I say individual, but it was more a low-key hive mind that infested other Cybertronians for its own ends, with the observed limit being three at a time, hence the title. He lead this group of clone troublemakers called the Ultracons, like some kind of resurgent Combatronian remnant."

"Oh..." Orion replied, "I've heard rumor that our Exarchon had similar abilities, but it's not very clear whether it was like that or just three persons with similar enough goals."

"I guess that depends on whether or not outliers are a thing in your universe," Hot Shot noted, although the term outlier still felt sour in his mouth.

"I... can't say I've heard the term before," Windblade answered.

"So the Functionists stamped them out in your universe," Hot Shot sighed.

"Never heard of them either," Orion answered.

This intrigued Hot Shot.

"So, what're either of those, out of curiosity?" Orion asked.

Well, better to talk about it then worry about homework.

"The Functionists were... well, they called themselves philosophers, but I'm sure there're better terms for their kind..." Hot Shot pondered briefly, "Anyway, they were a group that believed in a very utilitarian mindset. If you turned into a mining machine, you were to mine for energon and other materials. If you were a microscope, you were to look into microbes and particles and stuff. If you were a speeder, you were to transport materials at high speeds to whomever wanted them. Your alt mode was an indicator of your function, and your function dictated your fate."

"Sounds like an efficient system at least," Orion noted, though not without some level of worry on his face.

"On paper it works, but in practice it fails to account for things like "free will" and "the rights of individuals" and such," Hot Shot replied, "Eventually the friction between their iron grasp on the government's ears and the people's desire to make choices for themselves ended up creating the Decepticon movement."

"...The what?" both Orion and Windblade asked.

"The Decepticons not a thing in your universe?" Hot Shot answered one question with another.

"Well... they are, but it's more a group of super-powerful individuals fighting for anarchy," Orion replied.

"Well, that's one thing our universes have in common," Hot Shot sipped down another drink... "Hey, wait, I thought outliers weren't a thing?"

"We still don't know what that is," Windblade pointed out.

"Oh," Hot Shot cleared his throat, "Outliers are... well, mechanoids that lie outside of the Functionists' ideology. They have abilities that exceed their alt mode. Some teleport in spite of being cars. Others generate light while being fliers. and some, like me, well..." He sparked up a small flame on his fingers, "Stuff like that."  
The flame lasted a moment before a spray of fire-resistant foam hit Hot Shot from the ceiling.

"Sir, what did we say about using your talents in this space?" a waitress that was nearby asked.

"Yes, yes, I'll have to ask first. Sorry," Hot Shot sighed.

"Apology accepted," The waitress replied, moving on to another table.

"So, uh, that's my universe. Anything you think I should know about yours?"

"Well... something about the way you described functionism just... struck me as being very familiar," Orion noted, a mild look of concern crossing his face.

"I guess that whatever society you have going on that causes you to have four fingers has..." Hot Shot stopped himself. He shouldn't judge another universe like that,

"...Anyway..."

The conversation didn't become too lively after that. The three of them soon resumed their homework, and... something clicked for Hot Shot. His assignment was on Functionism and its flaws, and talking it with these two helped the puzzle pieces fall into place.

His optics zipped over to Maccadam, who was finishing cleaning an energon container when he looked up and gave a small wave.

That slick maker-slagger.

He planned this little encounter.

For Hot Shot, the conversation helped him on his assignment.

For Orion and Windblade, it could've... who knows, maybe the helpful effects went both ways. But knowing what little he knew about the mysterious bartender, there could've been a double meaning going on...

At any rate, this kind of encounter proved interesting, even between the homework and the confusion between universes. Both parties agreed that they should try it again sometime, if only out of indulgent curiosity.

So began the unofficially designated Transversal Homework Club.


	2. Chapter 2

The next week was much like the first. Hot Shot had a difficult assignment which he didn't have that much time to handle through no fault of his own (How was he supposed to know that the local dragons were migratory?) and so he decided to pop over to Maccadam's. Hopefully it goes a lot smoother there then... well, anywhere physically on Acadeimos.

Hot Shot got a booth near the front of the floor he happened to be on, ordered another energon drink, and got to work...

But before boredom could break him, a familiar voice called.

"Oh, hey, Hot Shot, right?"

He looked up to see Orion, carrying a bag of homework materials.

"Yeah, good to see you too... Orion?" Hot Shot replied.

"Yes, that's my name," Orion responded.

"Okay!" Hot Shot looked around, "No Windblade this time?"

"She's... taking care of something back home," Orion replied.

"Ah," Hot Shot motioned to the rest of the booth, "Alright, take what you need."

"How kind of you," Orion sat down, taking out his materials.

As the two got started on their assignments, a new voice spoke up.

"Oh, uh, this is awkward," this new voice attracted their attention. Its owner was a similarly gangly red and blue bot who looked a lot like a Star Convoy cosplayer (what did the school psychiatrist call this trend? Primus Apotheosis?) although there was something oddly... familiar about him, "I, uh, don't suppose there's room for one more here, right?"

"Uh, I'm sure we can squeeze you in, yeah," Hot Shot replied, and with that three people now sat at the table.

In between answers on the worksheet, Hot Shot glanced briefly at the newcomer. He knew for a fact that this guy is likely a different universe entirely, but the basic details looked familiar. Straight antennae, mohawk, chest window thing... if it weren't for the amount of red on this guy, he'd look like someone designed a robot based on how Hot Shot'd describe Orion... which gave Hot Shot a dumb idea.

"Hey, Orion?" Hot Shot asked.

"Yes?" Both of the booth's other occupants replied absentmindedly, before it clicked that they both responded to that name.

"Guess that Alternate Universe theory had more merit after all," Hot Shot smirked.

The awkward silence between the two did nothing to dissuade him.

"Soooo... alternate universe, huh?" the new Orion asked.

"Believe me, it was a shock for us both," Orion 1 answered (Note to self, Hot Shot, come up with different nicknames.)

"I mean, with everything that's happened recently, I'm... not sure if I'm in a position to judge," Orion 2 sighed.

"Hey, we've all got our own thing going on, NONE of us are," Hot Shot replied, "I had to help drive back a dragon invasion today."

"I fought a giant cat monster," Orion 1 added, briefly glancing around him to make sure of... something.

"Sounds like you two have at least somewhat calm adventures," Orion 2 replied.

"Oh, is that right?" Hot Shot smirked, "And what do you call an intense adventure?"

"You ever fight Megatron one on one, with only a few minutes to spare before the area was bombarded?" Orion 2 asked.

"...Uh, quick question, is Megatron in your universe-" Orion 1 began before he was cut off.

"A conquering monster who sees the world as nothing but his own personal playground?" Orion 2 replied, "The answer is yes."

"...My question was going to be strikingly different," Orion 1 sighed, "But I guess my universe is... far removed from everything."

"Oh, what, your Megatron a teenage rockstar or something?" Hot Shot asked.

"...Mmm..." Orion 1 groaned a bit.

"...Oooooooooh, Primus," Hot Shot and Orion 2 sighed.

Hot Shot could swear he heard someone from another booth break down giggling.

"I'm sure we'll find more differences to talk about when we double-check our homework," Hot Shot sighed, looking over his work.  
"Right," Orion 1 breathed what seemed like a sigh of relief, looking at his work again.

The booth was quiet for a while after that.

"Quick question," Hot Shot spoke up first.

"Yeah?" The Orions answered in unison.

"is Cold Construction a thing in your universes?"

"Never heard of it before," Orion 1 answered first.

"It doesn't happen often, due to there being... ethical issues," Orion 2 answered second.

"Okay, just checking," Hot Shot noted, "My assignment is on the historical implications of CC and its comparison to Forging and Kindling."

"Other universe are strange," Orion 1 replied, "Alternate forms of reproduction. Fascinating, but seems kinda unneeded since the Hot Spots spit out so many forglings at a time."

"Wait, you're all Forgeborn?" Orion 2 asked.

"Is that bad in your universe?" Orion 1 answered with a question.

"No, it just... startled me," Orion 2 sighed, "I mean, nobody's been forged in generations where I'm from."

"Guess that gives you ample reason as to why the Hot Spots are supplemented," Hot Shot noted.

"Wait, if Cold Construction is rare due to ethical issues, then where do most new mecha come from?" Orion 1 pointed out.

"Kindling, probably," Hot Shot replied.

"What is that?" Orion 1 asked.

The booth grew silent.

"Um..." Hot Shot thought for a moment.

"Well, uh, a Cyberstork delivers..." Orion 2 stammered.

"Uh, well, uh, it's kinda a simple concept, but..." Hot Shot's vents pulsed in embarrassment.

"W-when two mechanisms want to st-start a family..." Orion 2 added.

"Oh, is it a 'buy the parts yourself' kind of thing?" Orion 1 asked, now genuinely curious, "I've seen the concept in a movie made by a primitive civilization speculating on robotic civilizations."

"...I mean, some bots do that," Hot Shot noted, "but others... um..."  
In a surprise, a pink-armored femme popped by, obviously from the same universe as Orion 2, with a mischievous look on her face.

"I don't know what you two are trying to lie about, but my parents just had SEX and that's why I have soooooo many siblings," The girl grinned.  
The mortified look on Orion 1's face was enough to make any onlooker crack up, especially accompanied by Orion 2's whine of "Ariel, please..."

"...I, uh... I still don't know what that is," Orion 1 answered.

"...I'll send you a videofile explaining it to you," Hot Shot answered, completely mortified, "And, uh, you are?"

"Name's Ariel," the girl answered, "Orion's best friend and worst nightmare."

"Hot Shot," Hot Shot replied, "And this guy is... also Orion. Must be a bit confusing for you."

"Oh, no, I met two younger versions of my mom, one of which is apparently your classmate," Ariel noted, "This place is fraggin' weird and fraggin' awesome."

"How many dimensions connect to this damn bar?" Hot Shot asked nobody in particular.

"Quite a few!" Maccadam's voice echoed in response, accompanied by a little laughing.

"...Quite," Hot Shot sighed, 'of course that old man could hear me.'

"So, uh, how far along are you guys on your assignments?" Orion 1 asked, obviously trying to change the subject.

"Well, I'm... pretty far along," Hot Shot noted, secretly only about a third of the way done.

"I think I'm about done here," Orion 2 replied.

"Yeah, same, but perhaps it could help if we look over each other's work, right?" Orion 1 noted.

Hot Shot, not wanting to disappoint his new... buddies? Companions? whatever was appropiate for this, so he reluctantly agreed.  
The questions began not far along after.

"So, Star Convoy's a hero in your universe?" Orion 1 asked.

"Only the best and the greatest of them all," Hot Shot replied, "Heck, he's practically how heroism was born in my universe. Why do you ask, he anything like that in yours?"

"Mmmm, sort of," Orion 1 answered, "He's my, well, den-father, for lack of a better word. He runs the Pax den, which I'm a part of."

"In my world, Pax is a Royal House... so kinda the same, only with a bit more privelage, if that makes any sense," Hot Shot noted.

"The structure of your world's a little confusing the more I hear on it," Orion 2 noted.

"Well, you're reading about it too, is it hard to understand when written?" Hot Shot asked, a little concerned.

"Written by you, maybe," Orion 2 deadpanned.

"So, this problem is done - " Orion 1's optics quickly zoomed into the top of the datapad he was looking at, "...Wait, was this due last orn?"

"The bar's not limited to our timespans from what I've heard," Orion 2 noted, "Likely our universes operate on slightly different timescales and timelines... Okay, seriously, Hot Shot, how do your teachers read your handwriting?"

"...Beats me," Hot Shot finally conceded (handwriting was never his strongest suite), "Knowing them, I guess they're just glad I did it at all."

"I'll have to agree, this handwriting's not very easy to understand," Orion 1 noted.

"Okay, can we stop roasting the hell out of my handwriting?" Hot Shot asked, a slight flare of red emitting from the sides of his mouth.

"...Yeah, okay, sounds good," Orion 2 answered.

"...Sorry, it's just that when people get a little too focused on dumb stuff like handwriting, I get a little heated," Hot Shot sighed.

"You don't say," Orion 1 noted.

Hot Shot decided to look back at the notes he had.

"...There's a Library of Vos?" Hot Shot noted, surprised, "And Megatron blew it up?"

"...Unfortunately, yeah," Orion 2 answered, "It was among the first of their major casualties. I bet in a perfect world I could've seen its works."

"...That's..." Hot Shot sighed, not having a good response to it, "That's rough, buddy."

"Yeah, that's reassuring," Orion 2 deadpanned.

A brief silence overtook the booth.

"In retrospect, our different universes actually hamper our ability to really help each other, don't they," Orion 1 sighed.

"Yeah..." Hot Shot noted, "But you guys seem alright. If it weren't for the, y'know, different universes thing, I'd imagine we'd be hanging out more often."

"Probably," Orion 1 noted.

"Also probably not, who knows," Orion 2 pointed out, "For all we know, our equivalent in your universe is dead right now."

A nearby patron sneezed a bit, alarming the guy next to him. (hey, that guy looks so much like Hero Leaguer Overload, Hot Shot briefly thought)

"Admittedly, it's highly probable," Hot Shot noted, "Nobody's seen my universe's Orion Pax since... well, the beginning of the Age of Heroes 1500 years ago."

"Years?" Orion 2 asked.

"Stellar Cycles. Orns. Whatever," Hot Shot failed to clarify, "Point is, he's been missing a long time. Heck, one of you could slip into my dimension and fit right in."

"One of us?"

"Well, you're both Orion Pax, right?" Hot Shot pointed out, "It would be really awkward if it were to talk about both of you at the same time, unless you have another name you use from time to time."

"...I mean, I do, but it's kinda an alter ego I use," Orion 1 answered.

"Oh, wow, that's kinda the same deal with me, at least on paper," Orion 2 added.

"Oh, really?" Hot Shot raised an eyebrow, "What is it?"

Orion 1 looked around him, avoiding prying eyes, and Orion 2 cleared his throat.

"Optimus Prime." the answer from them both was simultaneous.

So simultaneous that they just looked at each other with shock.

"...What do the humans call that? Stereo?" Hot Shot asked.

"...So, uh, you get it from a relic, too?" Orion 1 asked.

"A device called the Optimizer," Orion 2 answered, "I kinda... share it with my friends."

"Oh, you get to share yours, huh?" Orion 1 asked, "That's neat. Mine's just kinda... stuck with me."

"You mean you can't leave it behind?"

"Unfortunately, not in my case. Monsters keep popping up and I have to help."

"Same. I honestly don't get it either. Sometimes I just want to be like, 'Why me?'" Orion 2 asked, "Can't Primus have at least waited until I'm NOT a youngling?!"

"I know, right?!" Orion 1 responded.

"...You two were forced into the heroism profession?" Hot Shot asked.

"You chose to go into it?" Orion 2 asked.

"I mean, yeah! I got the opportunity and I took it!" Hot Shot replied, "Heck, the school I'm attending is specifically focused on training future heroes!"

"WHAT" Both Orions did the stereo thing again.

"Yeah, it's actually a lucrative career path for some people!"

"You're just fracking with us now," Orion 1 made an accusatory statement.

"Maybe you can bring your friends and I could show you guys around."

"Wait, can we even do that?" Orion 2 asked.

"Even if Maccadam says no, I happen to know a guy that can tunnel through different dimensions, so maybe?" Hot Shot answered.

"...We're gonna have to think about all this." Orion 1 answered.

"Yeah, I might have to talk it through with Ariel and Dion," Orion 2 added.

"Suit yourself," Hot Shot sighed, "It's getting kinda late anyway."

"I thought there's barely any timelapse between entering the bar and leaving?" Orion 1 asked.

"True, but it's clear we're needing some time to process everything."

"That's fair."

"So, uh, same time next week, maybe?" Hot Shot asked.

"Probably," Orion 1 answered.

"Eh, can't guarantee it," Orion 2 added.

Gathering each of their materials (doublechecking to make sure they didn't accidentally grab something of the other guys'), the Orions and Hot Shot gave their farewells and departed, each getting a better picture on the variety of the multiverse.

And each wondering just how many more people would they run into?


	3. Chapter 3

The Transversal Homework Club had certainly grown a bit from its first few sessions. Hot Shot could pretty solidly call the people who showed up at least loose friends. Bar buddies? Right terms for them were still nebulous but whatever. But as the club grew, so did the number of dimensions Hot Shot had to juggle, which is why he started giving these dimensions nicknames.

Orion 1, Windblade, and their friend Minimus hailed from a universe where the populace was held under steel-toed bootheels by an uncaring system and plagued by monsters of unknown origin, but they were gifted with the power of ancient relics to defend the people... but their efforts were hampered by a group of rival heroes called the Decepticons who saw the system's oppression too great, and advocated for anarchy. Needless to say it'd be a shitshow, a total SNAFU even. When announcing the name he selected, however, Orion misheard it as "Snappu" and the term "Snap" stuck.

Orion 2, Ariel, and their friend Dion were from a universe similar in a few ways, but very very different in others. Megatron had managed to conquer a good portion of Cybertron alongside his Decepticons, and they even unlocked the ability to mutate their soldiers (and Hot Shot suspected others as well) into dangerous combat forms. To match this threat, the three of them used a device called the Optimizer, which augmented their armor and allowed them to fight back against the menace in a three-mech compaign to save Cybertron. This reminded Hot Shot of the 'tokusatsu' genre shows of Bumblebee's possibly-girlfriends' adoptive homeworld of Earth, which inspired him to slap the word Toku on their dimension.

Hot Shot's dimension, on the other hand, was a bit more idealistic - Autobot superheroes patrolled the streets, fighting disorder and disaster to drive back the machinations of his world's Decepticons, a political movement turned crime syndicate, and he was training to become another one of them at the Autobot Elite Guard Academy. This got his world the name AutoAca.

All of them could agree that learning about the other universes could give them insights into their own that they wouldn't have otherwise. Of course, the differences were also quite a hindrance on a couple counts...

"No, I don't think it makes sense for there to be Beastformer autobots! You already have the Maximals!"

Such as this point, which was raised by Snap Minimus in a rare bit of emotional argument.

"And I already told you, the Maximals outdated the Autobots by a couple hundred years as a mercenary guild! It is perfectly reasonable that a beastformer with slightly different methodologies from the Maximal's norm would go for a hero guild that matches them!" This point was not raised by Hot Shot, but rather Bumblebee, who was brought in to help Hot Shot with his homework...

...and Hot Shot was certainly not okay with the resultant arguments. At least them being at Maccadams' meant the shouting match'd stay a shouting match... hopefully.

"It makes more organizational sense for a beastformer Autobot to be put into a Maximal unit!" Minimus spoke up, "I mean, if I turned into a turbofox, would it really match if I were to still wear an Autobot Insignia?"

"Yes, because your guild membership is not dictated by your frackin' alt mode!" Bumblebee spat back, "You freakin' neo-Functionist!"

"Oh, don't you compare me to your universe's oppressive bureaucrats, boy!" Minimus growled, "I am merely stating the fact that it makes no sense for the Autobots to have beastformer members, but the Maximals to have no standardformers!"

"Why would the Maximals need a standardformer?!" Bumblebee spat back again, "It literally makes no primus-damned-"

"ENOUGH!!!" Hot Shot shouted, ejecting a burst of flame to interrupt their pointless argument.

This was enough to catch their attention... and trip a fire retardant foam shower on him.

"Look. We can all agree it is a little nonsensical for the Maximals to disinclude standardformers, but the Autobots to have beastformer members," Hot Shot pointed out, "BUT! I can say without a shadow of a doubt that our universes all have some nonsensical elements in their structure."

"Like what? Name one nonsensical thing in your universe that you can't argue against and I'll drop my point," Minimus made his challenge.

As if on cue, the stomps of an equinoid caught their attention. Said equinoid was ridden by Mini, another student of the Autobot Academy who was notable for being a strong and silent oddball who bore an odd resemblance to the members of House Ambus... and also nonsense like riding a black-armored Equinoid indoors, in the middle of a dining establishment.

"...Minimus, this is Mini. We don't know what his deal is, but I think it'd meet the criteria of nonsensical thing," Hot Shot introduced him.

"I'm guessing he's my equivalent in your universe?" Minimus asked.

"You'd think that, but Ultra Magnus and the Magnus Corp also exists," Hot Shot pointed to a nearby table, where his universe's Ultra Magnus / Mimimus Ambus was busy drinking another member of the Corp under the table.

"...Point proven," Minimus sighed, "I'm... I feel I should apologize to your friend for my... inadequate sensitivities."

"Oh, no, it's fine. I honestly thought this was a debate club for a good amount of time," Bumblebee chuckled.

"So, uh, we cool?" Hot Shot asked.

"I suppose we are," Minimus replied.

"I sure hope so," Bumblebee added.

"Okay, great. Now, what were we talking about before this nonsense started flailing about the room and ruining the other patrons' night?"

A brief silence happened across the table, as everyone came to the realization that whatever they were talking about before had been so utterly overshadowed as to be forgotten.

"Maybe we were speculating about what other universes we could encounter in future sessions of this club?" Snap Orion asked.

"I definitely don't remember that, but I guess it'd be great conversation fodder," Toku Orion added.

Mutters of agreement popped up.

"Well, if we're gonna be speculating, we might as well be completely utter nonsensical in our speculations," Minimus pondered a bit, "Like, say... I don't know... Windblade...but she turns into a car."

"Wow, yeah. That'd be odd," Windblade chimed in, "Like, imagine me as being this preppy little carformer."

"Ok, ok, I got one," Ariel spoke up, "Now, does anyone here know about a guy named Cyclonus."

"Oh, uh, he was a member of the Proudstar Expedition alongside Nova Prime and Galvatron... before Overlord blew it up," Hot Shot added.

"And he's a member of our universe's Decepticons, really dangerous swordmaster," Windblade added.

"Okay, like, imagine him in his broody teenage years... and possibly as a geek?" Ariel pondered.

"...Good lord, I'm already cringing at the thought," Windblade chuckled.

"Oh, oh, oh oh, oh! dude. Dude." Dion spoke up, "Anyone here know Whirl?"

"Oh, she's an old friend of mine," Hot Shot spoke up.

"What if she was your annoying kid sister?" Dion added his speculation.

"...Holy shit, that'd be terrifying," Hot Shot shuddered at the thought.

"Okay, okay, okay, I got one," Bumblebee added, "Okay. We have two Orion Paxes here, right?"

"Yeah?" Snap Orion answered.

"Where're you going with this?" Toku Orion asked.

"Okay, picture a third, but he's also Megatron."

Brief moments of concern crossed the Orions' faces.

"Uh-" Hot Shot started to respond.

"There you go," Bumblebee spoke up.

"...What, is he Shockwave's nutty experiment lovechild or something?" Toku Orion asked.

"Yeah. And he's also Shockwave's actual child," Bumblebee added, "And annoying kid Whirl? His sister."

"...Now all I'm wondering is who'd the mom be," Hot Shot asked.

"Excuse me!" A new voice caught their attention. 

As the group turned, they saw four mechs standing at the table. A red femme carformer with black helm and blue highlights. A brooding dark purple jetformer with prominent horns. A mostly blue mech with chest windows and red highlights. and in the third's arms, a smaller stuggling monoeyed heliformer.

"We, uh, we've been told you're the local homework club at this place," the carformer spoke up, "Is, uh, is this a bad time?"

"Oh, no, we were having a bit of a down period anyway," Toku Orion spoke up.

"Mind if we get some names, just for ease?" Windblade added.

"Oh, I'm Windblade," the Carformer answered, "The broody one's Cyclonus, the big lug's Glithor, and the little monster he's trying to wrangle is Whirl."

A brief silence dawned across the table.

"Uh... is something wrong?"

"...Are you fracking kidding me," was the thought of everyone there today.

As the new group got acquainted, more information was gained about these newcomers. Their universe was also ravaged by war, but it had ended quite some time before their creation. Most of their parents had in fact left the old grudges of war behind, and so they've only really known the past of their world through limited historical information they've learned.

"I guess, in a way, your universe is a reversal of what we've seen here before, huh?" Toku Orion noted.

"I'm not sure I follow," Glithor replied.

"Well, my universe is defined by a shadow war waged by the Decepticons..." Toku Orion explained.

"My universe is more about the conflict between the mysterious monsters and us heroes," Snap Orion added.

"And I'm training to take a profession where fighting war is antithetical," Hot Shot finished, "But your universe had already been though war, and yet, you seem okay. Like, normal civilian okay."

"...Normal civilian might be a bit of a stretch," Car Windblade answered.

"True, but I guess nobody at this table can count as normal anyway," Hot Shot smirked, "Welcome to the table, Team Reversal!"

The four of them each had their own facial reaction to this dubbing.

"I don't like that name," was the only verbal responce, spoken by Cyclonus. CYCLONUS of all people.

"...Well, I call his universe Toku and his universe Snap, and they call my universe AutoAca," Hot Shot answered, "So, uh, we all got names that are... a little questionable, but we're just kinda stuck with them."

Murmurs of agreement crisscrossed the table.

"Fair enough," Glithor agreed.

"Still don't have to like it," Cyclonus groaned.

"Well, I wouldn't say it's outright bad, it's just-" Glithor began to interject, only for his interjection to be interrupted by the hand of a passing patron on his shoulder.

A hulking, purple patron, with a single yellow eye. At once the table went silent, as each of the students recognized that particular face...

"Glithor?" the titan spoke in a soft, british-accent-type voice.

"Oh, uh, hey dad," Glithor addressed him.

"What's going on over here?"

"It's..." Glithor looked over the table, "...A homework club."

"Ah!" The cyclops responded almost happily, "Relying on fellow students to help out! Good use of resources. Carry on then."

As the cyclops departed, Glithor turned back to the table, when he finally noticed the collective shock of everyone there. "Uh, what's wrong, guys? You look like you've seen a monster walk by casually."

"...Was that SHOCKWAVE?!" TokuOrion was the first to respond.

"...Yeah, why?"

"Holy scrap, he DOES EXIST!" Hot Shot stammered, "I mean, I always sort of knew he would in an infinite universe, but I never thought I'd actually see a version of him outside of myth!"

"So, Shockwave's your dad and a cyclops, huh?" SnapOrion asked.

"I mean, the cyclops thing is common knowledge from what I've heard," Glithor answered.

"So, is it natural in your universe?"

"I mean... maybe? I've never really been curious enough to ask."

"I guess it makes sense, but it's surprising to see a Shockwave that looks cycloped," SnapOrion noted, "We're more used to him having a face over in our world."

"I wasn't shocked by the cyclops thing, sadly," TokuOrion sighed.

"Same thing in your universe?" Hot Shot asked.

"Yeah... admittedly, he's also trying to kill us a lot," Dion answered, "Sometimes with kaijin, sometimes bioweapons, and sometimes with a good old-fashion gun."

"Although he was a good tutor while I was in the Decepticon palace, come to think of it..." TokuOrion noted.

"Decepticon what?" A good number of the other people there asked.

"...Did I forget to tell them about it?" TokuOrion asked.

"We probably should've mentioned it," Ariel answered.

"Yeah..." Dion added.

"...Well, guess we're the only ones here who don't encounter a Shockwave on the regular," Hot Shot noted.

"Unless you count Tremor," Bumblebee added.

"Who?" SnapOrion asked.

"Oh, purple eye-patched associate of Artillery, one of Hot Shot's friends," Bumblebee explained.

"WAIT. Hot Shot is friends with Artillery in his world," Minimus asked.

"Friends might be a... weird word for it. Teammates? Associates? IDK," Hot Shot replied.

"For a while I thought you two were dating," Bumblebee noted.

"I admire her attitude but I don't think it'd work out between us," Hot Shot replied, "Too domineering for a good relationship and I'm like 70% sure she's into girls."

"Artillery. Of all the people you know," SnapWindblade sunk her face into her hands.

"What? Is this Artillery person special in your universe?" RevWindblade inquired.

"Sort of," SnapWindblade answered, "She was one of the first to turn against the Fourth Liege of the Maximal Era, forming a resistance. Not that much is known about her, but I know Megatron at least holds her in high regard."

"Oh, wow, it's like that version of her's an idealized version of our's," Bumblebee noted.

"It is?" SnapWindblade asked.

"Our Artillery's also got a 'resistance' going, although what exactly it's resisting is lost on me," Bumblebee explained.

"Societal degradation?" Hot Shot answered in a way that made it kinda obvious he didn't know either.

"As fascinating as talking about this is, I think it'd be a bit more pertinent that we actually deal with our homework," Cyclonus snarled, "That way this wasn't just a waste."

"Oh, uh, sure, should be easy-" SnapOrion reached for his datapad... only to find it wasn't there. "Uh, guys, did anyone see the datapad I was using?"

Everyone looked around the table a bit, but it was increasingly clear the table was a datapad short.

It wasn't until Hot Shot looked over his shoulder that he found it... in the hands of a small orange guy who was obviously playing on it.

"Oh, found it. Hang on."

Hot Shot got up and walked to the small orange fellow.

"Hey, kid, I know the games on them are tempting, but it isn't nice for you to take someone's datapad," Hot Shot addressed him, "Can I get that back so I can give it to my nice friend over there?"

"The more universe you add, the more you confuse," the boy replied, "I'm helping filter it, so until then I refuse!"

"...What?" Hot Shot replied, "Kid, seriously, you're not being very nice."

"I give you help and you dismiss me," the boy hissed, "Let me handle it less I break your knee."

"Maccadam doesn't allow fighting, buddy."

"Maccadam's laws apply to Primus's kin," The boy snarled, a strange black substance beginning to dribble from it, "But I'm afraid I'm deep in sin..."

"...Guys, I think this kid won't let it go unless I tear it away," Hot Shot turned to the table, "Plus he's starting to creep me out."

"I'm guessing you need help, then?" TokuOrion smirked.

"That'd be ideal, yes," Hot Shot replied.

"I know you act cuz you didn't hear! Trying to help your friend, so DON'T INTERFERE," The boy practically growled.

"Can someone hold him back?" TokuOrion asked.

"Uh, sure!" RevWindblade answered.

"...Y'know what fine, your effort? Can't beat it," The boy conceded.

"We didn't even-" RevWindblade attempted to reply.

"But sometimes the best solution?" The boy grinned, "EAT IT."

In a matter of moments, RevWindblade found herself holding onto the orange scraphead while TokuOrion tryed to pry the datapad from his jaws.

"I swear, that black slime's getting bad vibes," Hot Shot noted, "Is, uh, is that normal in any of your universes?"

"Well..." SnapOrion tried to reply when he looked over his shoulders to see a couple of the Jhiaxian Institute teachers watching this with... honestly, confusion.

"I promise we're going our homework!" SnapOrion addressed them, "It's just been eaten!"

It took them 20 minutes to pry the damn pad from the orange monster's jaws. In that time, they managed to dent the table, damage the datapad's screen, and the boy began screaming in a tongue that made everyone in earshot cry automatically. In the end, the boy was grabbed by a guy who looked a lot like the Kup of everyone's respective universe, who looked less creeped out by the boy's brown-note screaming and more "I don't have enough shits to deal with this."

With that, everyone agreed that this session went sideways in a matter of moments, and so they decided that next time, they'd split into groups to be more manageable.

Course, nobody realized that the orange freak did SnapOrion a favor, as he got a critical question wrong that would've likely tagged him for a disappearing by the government. But that's a story for another timeline...


End file.
